


Year of Beginnings

by Texeoghea



Series: Parental Guidance Needed [1]
Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Autistic Character, Bonding, Brotherly Bonding, Carecrow, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Fireworks, Fluff, Klarion Doesn't Know How To Be A Brother, Klarion Hates Loud Noises, Minor Violence, Multi, Sibling Bonding, So Are Jon And Ed, Trans Character, Trans Male Character, again more of Teekl being the real star in Year Two, bats didn't ask for this, chapters are short but theres a lot of em, crow is protective, he's doing his best, help these two they don't know how to raise a kid, i have executive dysfunction excuse my horrible timing with chapters, in which Teekl is the real MVP, in which ed and jon accidentally adopt a kid, mr freeze goes hard on snow fights, my favorite tag, once Riley learns to fight he fights everyone, the working title for this was "ed and jon accidentally adopt a kid", there is violence in chapter 11 but its an intense snow fight, this includes the entirety of Klarion's appearance, when will riley get the haircut he deserves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-27
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2018-12-07 16:53:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11627805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Texeoghea/pseuds/Texeoghea
Summary: It wasn't like Edward and Jonathan had MEANT to adopt a kid, but, well... it all started when they jacked a car.





	1. Episode 1: Unintended Side-Effect

_July 24th, 3:00 PM._

Edward had hot-wired the closest car to the asylum, some blue buggy type thing across the street. He had slid into the driver’s seat while Jon had climbed into the passenger seat and was already driving when he heard a voice from the back of the car, which was very not supposed to be there. “Who are you?” A child’s voice rang. Jonathan turned around in his seat and Eddie swerved a bit in surprise. A teenager was sitting in the backseat, behind the driver. They had bright blue-green eyes and shoulder-length, choppy hair, a baggy sweater draped on them, even though it was really hot in the car. Like, incredibly so- it was summer, why were they wearing a sweater in the first place? They were also securely buckled in- had they been sitting with it on in the car, or did they buckle up before saying something? Who even left their kid in the hot car for that long, wasn’t that illegal? The blue buggy had been outside for hours, Edward had assumed it was empty.

“Did we just accidentally kidnap a child?” Ed spoke quietly but there was underlying panic at the monumental block in his foolproof plan. Jonathan nodded gravely. “Yes, yes we did. What’s your name, kid?” He drawled slowly. The child hesitated for a bit before saying something quietly. “Sorry, what was that?” Edward coaxed, keeping his eyes on the road. They still weren’t being chased yet, thankfully. “I said, uh, I don’t like my name,” They said, still quiet but loud enough to be heard. “Well then, what do you want us to call you, kid?” Jonathan asked. The kid looked shocked, but replied bubbily, “Riley.”

Jonathan and Edward nodded. “Hello, Riley. I’m Scarecrow, and this is my partner, Riddler,” He said, gesturing to Edward. Riley’s eyes brightened a bit. “Like from the news? You look different than you do on the news. Why are you in orange?” It was that moment that Jonathan realized they weren’t in costume. “Ah, yes, we’re, uhh…”

“Disguised!” Ed chirped.

“Yes! We’re disguised. We needed this car to get away with secret intel we stole from the asylum,” Jon went along with the lie. Riley grinned. “Like spies! That’s so cool!” Edward smiled a bit. “How long have you been in here, ki- Riley?” Jonathan asked. Riley shrugged, “I dunno. Maybe a few hours? It’s been a while, but I have a book. Dad usually leaves me here for a while while he works and then brings back lunch before leaving again.” Jonathan growled. That sounded just as irresponsible as he’d thought. “So, are we gonna drop them off at the corner next to the station?” Eddie lowered his voice as Jonathan turned back around, the kid reading their book. “Too risky. They could tell whoever’s there we dropped em off. We could give ‘em to the sirens?” Jonathan offered. Eddie shook his head at that. “Pam hates kids because they tear up lawns, Selina probably doesn’t want a teen around her cats. And Harley might accidentally hurt them. She doesn’t know her own strength. I think we just have to keep them, Jon. Besides, you heard them. Their dad sucks. I can relate to that, Jon. I don’t want this kid to grow up as shitty as I did.” Edward’s voice was determined, and Jonathan just sighed. He couldn’t change his mind once Ed had decided something.

“Fine. But if they break anything, they’re outta here.”

“Deal.”


	2. Episode 2: It's Raining Dads

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bonding time? Bonding time. Kind of. Someone help these two they have no idea what they're doing

_The same day, about thirty minutes after the car was stolen_.

Once they had gotten back to their hideout, Jon and Eddie had quickly herded the teen inside, though they were very curious about this new place. “Don’t go in the basement or on the roof, it’s dangerous, okay Riley?” Jon said, picking them up and dropping them on the old couch. Nothing to see in either of those locations, just some lab equipment and a murder of crows hanging out.

“Here, watch TV or something. You like cartoons, right? Kids like cartoons,” He mumbles as he turns it on to a kid’s network. “I'm not really a kid, but okay. Also, Dad says I shouldn’t watch TV and that it’s a waste of time,” Riley says, but looks happy. “Your dad is wrong and you should be doing kid things like watching cartoons and eating ice cream bars and riding bikes, not reading books or something,” Eddie calls from another room. Riley curls up on the couch and wrap their arms around themselves, then grab a pillow and cuddle that. “Riley, do you want something to eat?” Eddie asked while walking by, heading towards the kitchen. “Yes please! I’m a hungry boy,” Riley says happily. “Boy, huh?” Eddie hums quietly. He quickly makes the kid a turkey sandwich, making a mental note to go get more food soon, and gives it to the little boy. “Here you go. Do you want something to hug? I have plushies that are more comfy than that pillow,” He asks. Riley looks at him for a long moment before tilting his head. “But i thought toys were for little kids,” He says, confused, chewing on the sandwich. Eddie’s heart falls a little at that. “No, that’s not true. They’re for everyone. Do you like Pokemon?” He asks, sitting next to the kid. “Well, yes, but my dad doesn’t know I have a DS…” He whispers conspiratorially. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell.” Eddie smiles at him. “Who’s your favorite?” Riley frowns a bit at that, staring at the screen for a moment and takes another bite.

“I have a lot,” He finally decides on. “I like Zangoose and Raichu the most, though. But I like all of them.” Edward nodded, and then left for a few seconds. He came back with a soft, roundish Raichu plush, trading it for the now-empty plate. Shit that kid ate fast. “Here, he’s more comfortable than that pillow, I bet,” He smiles at the kid. Jonathan leans against the wall and watches all of this with a small, fond smile, finding how easily Edward fell into a parental role endearing, if a bit worrying. Was he going to be like Batman with all the Robins? Were they going to have a menagerie of kids soon? He wasn’t sure he was ready to be a father to one kid, let alone however many there might be in the future. As Edward walks past him again to put the plate in the sink, he stops him and kisses him gently. Edward smiles and blushes at him, pushing him playfully before walking away. Jonathan was about to follow him when Riley’s voice rose up from the couch, “Hey Papa?” Jonathan froze and turned around. “What?” He asked, more in shock then answering the question. “Where’s the remote?” The boy asks innocently, unaware of the effect that one word had on the man.

Papa.

The kid called him dad, he was a dad, oh god Jonathan was gonna cry. He wordlessly picked up the remote from the TV stand and gave it to him before quickly walking away and towards Eddie, who looked starstruck as he was. “Eddie,” Jonathan said quietly. “Jonathan, are you okay?” Edward asked, a bit worried. “Eddie he called me papa. Papa, Eddie, oh my god he thinks we’re his new dads I don’t think I can do this-” He was shaking a bit, and Edward put on hand on his shoulder and ran the other through his hair. “Jon, hun, it’s okay. He already likes us, this is gonna be really easy, okay? He’s well behaved, a bit mature, even if that’s a result of neglect, and we can take care of him- oh my god are you crying? Why are you crying??” Edward panicked a little. “He called me papa Eddie,” Jonathan said, distressed, like that was a proper answer. “I know, but why are you crying? Is this good or bad crying? Are you having a breakdown??” Eddie got increasingly distressed as well, and Jon just made a little confused and distressed noise. While all of this was happening, Riley sat happily on the couch, cuddling his new stuffy, and flipping through channels on the TV. He liked his new dads.

After Jonathan had calmed down a bit and Riley had nodded off on the couch, Eddie decided it was best to take the kid to his new room. He shook him awake gently, saying his name softly until the boy grumped at him and sat up, frowning adorably. “It’s time for bed, Riley. Do you wanna sleep in a real one?” Riley nodded reluctantly, getting up and grabbing both the Raichu and Edward’s hand, which made his heart melt a little. He led the child to his room, which had been somewhat hastily set up. It had a large mattress on a cardboard box, with some sheets, a pillow, and a blanket on it. There were also some more plushies dumped on it. There was a window in the room, though a small one. It looked like this room had originally been a storage room, but had been repurposed. A little nightlight sat in the outlet near the bed, a precaution, just in case. “Here ya go, bud. We can deck it out more later, but for now get some rest, okay?” Edward said softly. “Okay, dad,” The little boy yawns, teetering over to the bed and falling on it, kicking off his shoes and pulling the blanket and pile of stuffies over him, promptly passing out. “Goodnight, son,” Edward said softly, clicking the light off and closing the door.


	3. Episode 3: Kuda, the Demon Ferret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley deals with his past and finds a friend.

_July 27th, morning._

And so the story went. Riley continued to live with the two, adjusting to life easily. Until the day came when the missing posters went up.

Riley had expressed that he wanted a pet to Edward a few days after they had found him in the car, after waking up and eating the cereal he was given. “Dad,” he said with a finality that didn’t match the 14-year-old speaking, “I want a pet.” Or more accurately he had said he wanted a friend, but he was talking about pets. “Well, Riley, we can’t really take care of one,” Eddie said uncertainly. “I promise i’d feed him and everything!” Riley says. Jonathan walks over from the basement right at that part. “Feed who?” He questions, raising an eyebrow. Eddie says “Nothing” right as Riley says “A ferret.” Jonathan blinks. Eddie and Riley stare at each other for a long moment before Riley smirks at him and turns to Jon, pulling puppy-dog eyes. “Please can I get a ferret, Papa?” He says in the sweetest voice the little demon can muster. Eddie knew then and there that he wouldn’t win.

 

Turns out they didn’t even have to pay for the creature, as when they got to the pet store in civilian clothes they found Jervis racing out with cages of rabbits and the entire cash register. Riley pays that absolutely no mind, simply walking through the door while the cashier chases after the madman, walking up to the ferret cages. “Hello, friends,” He coos softly at them. The ferrets stare at the boy with their cute beady eyes, until one snow-white one hops up to him and sticks its hand through the bars. “Do you wanna come out?” He asks, and it chittered at him. Riley opens the cage just enough to pull out the white ferret and then quickly closes it again so the others don’t escape. He holds the ferret in both hands, and it chittered at him. “Hi there,” He said. The ferret leaned forward and licked his nose. He was the chosen one.

 

After taking the ferret and some food, along with a cage, and getting the hell outta there, the family came across a missing poster, for none other than Riley himself. Except it had a different name and gender listed. “So that’s why you didn’t want to tell us your name, huh?” Eddie asked gently. Riley nodded hesitantly, holding the ferret closer. “Yeah. My dad says that I can’t know until i’m older, even though I know right now. He says i’m probably wrong.” Edward visibly bristled at that, and picked up the kid in a hug. “Your feelings are real, and they belong to you. Nobody else can tell you what you feel or that they’re wrong, okay?” Riley nodded, tears welling up in his eyes. “In fact, I have a plan of just how to get that across from him…” Edward held the child closer and stared at the call number and reward amount on the poster intently, a plan forming in his mind. “Jonathan, where did we leave that car?”

 

The plan was fairly simple. Call up the father, tell him they found his kid, but instead of handing him over, they take the money and then toss him out the window and run. When they arrived at the house, Riley was shaking a bit and had gone completely mute, holding the ferret close to his chest. The fluffy creature had curled up to him, swishing its tail. It hissed as they approached the door, and Riley shushed it as he put it in his sweater pocket. Jonathan knocked on the door, looking generally unamused by this whole endeavor. The door opened and revealed a large, tall man, balding, seemingly in his early sixties. “Ah, you must be the two that found my dear Eleanor. Please, come inside!” He opens the door wider. The three step in, all feeling sick. Edward looks royally pissed, but was containing himself. The man invited them to sit down, and Riley immediately sat, like he had been trained to. Jonathan and Edward sat more slowly, and on either side of Riley. He felt a bit more safe. “Here is the payment in check, like I promised,” The man said, giving the check to Jonathan. It had one of Jon’s fake names on it, connected to a bank account he used for things like this. No sooner than Jon’s hand had touched it did Eddie pull a gun from his jacket and shoot the man in the head. Gore spewed everywhere and Riley screamed. The scream caused his ferret to become alarmed, leaping out and lunging at the source of the noise- Edward’s arm. Eddie yelped and pulled it away before it could get a good grip and dropped onto the table in front of the startled boy, who was trembling and crying. “Oh no, no no no, don’t cry Riley, i’m sorry I scared you,” Eddie said quickly, putting the gun back in his jacket and reaching for the child, who leaned away from him. The ferret hissed. Eddie frowned more and looked Jonathan desperately. The man stood and lifted up the little boy easily, and kissed him on the top of his head. “Shh, it’s okay, that man won’t hurt you anymore, okay? I’m sorry the loud noise scared you, but you’re safe now. It’s okay,” He said in a hushed voice. Eddie smiled softly, then turned when he heard sirens. “Fuck. Jon, we gotta go.” He walked to the front window and looked out, seeing people standing outside. The car was a no-go. “Th-there’s a hole in the fence, a loose board, right in front of a hole in the bushes. I used to use it to get out sometimes,” Riley said quietly. Eddie smiled at him and ran out of the back door. Once they were on the street, they ran a bit until they were out of sight of where the sirens were originating, and then slowed to a walk. Jonathan put the little boy down and took his hand, and they walked like a normal family back home. “I’m pretty sure that ferret is evil,” Ed hummed. “You’re just saying that because it tried to bite you after you scared the kid,” Jon said without missing a beat. Riley giggled and looked at the creature in his hands. “I’m gonna name you… Kuda.” The ferret chirped at him and put its little paws on his face, making him giggle. Yes, Kuda would do just fine.


	4. Episode 4: The Crow Conundrum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crow has some issues with what's been going on.

_July 30th._

Riley had suspected for some time that Jonathan had something going on with him- he’d randomly just, leave, without saying anything. Eddie would sometimes look up from whatever he was doing, but usually? He just ignored it. Riley found it weird, but if it wasn’t his business, he wasn’t going to ask. He had learned better. But one day he had come home from wandering about to find Eddie lying on the ground, holding his face, and Jonathan nowhere to be seen. The windows were open. “Dad! What happened to you?” Riley cried, running over, but Eddie looked so alarmed that he stopped. “Riley, hush and go to your room, okay? Right now.” Riley became increasingly worried, but did as he was told. He heard scraping at the window, and a rough voice that was somewhat familiar talking briefly, but nothing happened. Riley felt increasingly out-of-the-loop, and it was bothering him a bit. “Kuda, we’ve got to get to the bottom of this,” He says like a detective, looking over to the cage sitting next to his bed. The ferret chittered, almost like a laugh, and reached its paws through the bars. Riley looked behind him and saw a hat, like an old newsie cap. “Perfect! Great deduction, Detective Kuda!” The boy picked up the cap and dusted it off, then put it on his head and tucked his hair up into it. “Man, I need a haircut…” He took the ferret out of its cage and on his shoulder. “It’s time to crack the case, Detective Kuda!” Kuda curled up and chirred. This would be interesting.

Riley followed his Papa up to the roof after one of these events, where there would be some silent argument and then he would go up to the roof and Edward would huff and go do something. The little boy found his father-figure sitting on the ledge of the roof, his legs dangling over, and so many birds around him! There had to have been a thousand of them, beautiful black crows staring at him. Riley smiled at them, while Kuda slid into his pocket. The boy walked over to the man, pulling on his sleeve. “Papa?” He asked. The man looked over at him, looking incredibly tired. His eyes were different, though Riley couldn’t exactly pinpoint how. “ **No, i’m not your papa, kid. Not right now.** ” He said, and turned back around. “Oh.” Well that made sense! His voice did seem different, and he didn’t get along well with Dad, unlike Papa. Riley hopped up next to him, crossing his legs. “Okay. I’m Riley, what’s your name?” He smiled sunnily at the man and held out his hand. The man stared at him for a moment before smiling a bit himself and shaking his hand. “ **My name is Scarecrow.** ” Riley kept smiling as he said, “That’s a weird name. I’m gonna call you Crow.” Crow laughed at that, more out of surprise than amusement, both at the bold statement and how well the kid was taking this. “ **Fine by me, kid.** ” Riley reached out to one of the crows, but it hopped away from him. “Aww,” He said quietly. “ **Do you wanna pet ‘em?** ” Crow asks, and Riley nods vigorously. Crow reaches his hand out to one sitting farther away, watching them, putting his other hand to his mouth and making a shrill whistling noise. The Crow flapped its wings and cawed back before flying over to the two. Crow caught it and lowered it into his lap. “ **This is Craw,** ” He said. “ **She was one of the first crows to join my murder. That’s what a group of crows are called,** ” He tells the child. “ **She’s very friendly, so she’ll probably let you pet her.** ” Riley reached out and patted her head, making her squawk indignantly. Crow laughed. “ **No, no, pet her like this,** ” He said gently, and rubbed his finger under her chin. She warbled happily. “Ohh,” Riley says, and tries again. He sits with Crow and the birds for a while, learning all their names and how they like to be pet. Then, he decided that he needed to help his Dad and his new Bird Papa to be friends. “I’ll be right back,” He promised Crow.

So as it turned out, Jonathan was not one dad, but two, sharing a body through a deal made when Jon was little- Crow sticks with him and protects him as long as he gets to feed off of the desperation and fear plaguing Jonathan’s life. Riley, being only thirteen and still pretty innocent, wasn’t really aware of the fact that his dad had basically made a deal with a demon, and also wasn’t really prejudice enough to care if he did. In his kid mind, he had yet another father, which he was very happy about. Edward had gone up to the roof and stayed up there for a while, and Riley heard some yelling, but then they both came down together, and everything seemed fixed again. Although it looked like they had been crying. Wow, these two sure did cry a lot, huh? Whatever. Now that that drama was fixed, he walked up to the two men and smiled sweetly, saying, “Breakfast?” And they all laughed together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a bit of a filler. still working on episode 7.


	5. Episode 5: Witches and Bats and Sirens, Oh My!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley is just a 14 year old and is having trouble keeping up with how much can happen in two days- like meeting your adopted brother, having a staring contest with none other than the Bat himself, and then getting to crash with the former Gotham Sirens.

August 1st. Riley found out something amazing one day. He had a brother. A brother that was older than him by like centuries, though he wasn’t sure how, because he was only like a few inches taller than him. He had a cat. His name was Klarion.

Klarion was magic, and therefore absolutely amazing. He had blue skin and cool horns and could float and do cool witch stuff and he had a pet cat named Teekl. Teekl and Kuda got along strangely well- you’d think the cat would be chasing the rodent around, but no, they seemed very friendly. Klarion was also very friendly- he had come to get some fear toxin from Jonathan and have some tea, and found Riley sitting on the couch. After a short explanation from the two, Klarion’s “They basically adopted me” and Riley’s “They jacked a car and I was in it” let the two bond quickly enough. Klarion was more than happy to have a tea party with the friendless teen and watch cartoons with him, and Edward and Jonathan arrived home to see both of their sons curled on the couch, asleep, with cartoons playing on TV and pets laying on their plates, having finished off the snacks. Edward put a blanket over them and Jonathan turned off the TV, leaving a pack of glow-in-the-dark stars next to Riley.

 

The next day was the day Riley met Batman for the first time.

Don’t get me wrong, he had seen the bat on the news before, and had seen his shadow swoosh by the window enough, but that was normal. But, actually locking eyes with the mystery vigilante? A whole other bag of tricks. The way it happened was simple enough- Ed and Jon had wanted to teach Riley basic self defense, and Klarion was to be his opponent, as their sizes were similar. This was also good because Riley could practice avoiding any magical attacks that might come at him, and Edward and Jonathan had a heist-date planned for that night. While the two were sparring and Klarion was teaching Riley basic moves, however, the commotion attracted the Bat. Riley saw him first, noticing a shadow on the roof, a black shape against the cool blue of the night sky, and jumped. Klarion looked up and saw him too, immediately ushering Riley inside. The bat watched the two silently, before turning his head suddenly and leaping away.

Edward and Jonathan didn’t come home that night.

In the morning, Klarion made Riley some breakfast and while he was eating, called Selina. “Witch Boy? Why are you calling me?” She asked dryly. “It seems that Edward and Jonathan have been tossed in the madhouse, and left a child- teenager, i mean- alone at their hideout.” The line was silent for a moment. “They have another kid?” The shock was apparent, and Klarion nearly laughed. “Apparently! I was as surprised as you are. But I have business to attend to and cannot care for him, so would you take him in for a bit?” Selina hummed, and then said something to someone in another room. A short muffled conversation passed before Selina said, “Yeah, i’ll come pick the little rascal up. It’s their default one, right?”

“Indeed.”

“What’s the kid’s name again?”

“Riley.”

 

The sirens arrived around lunchtime. Klarion had left him with some macaroni and told him the instructions were on the box, putting a step-stool next to the counter so he could reach the cupboard. Seriously, could Edward even reach up here? Riley was sitting on the couch eating his cheesy prize when he heard a knock on the door. He put the bowl down carefully and slunk over to the door like he’d been taught, going around and looking through the small hole near the bottom of the wall. He saw three pairs of boots- black, green, and pink-red. Sirens? He stood up and said in what he was pretty sure was a doorkeeper voice, “What’s the password?” A giggle came from the other side, along with a scoff. “Crow,” A voice said. That was probably right. Riley opened the door and saw three women who almost towered over him. Wow, they were tall. Not as tall as his dads- well maybe the black and green ladies were- but certainly taller than he was. Why is everyone so _tall_?

“Hello,” He says. The woman garbed in black leather smiles at him. “Hey! You’re Riley, right?” Riley nodded. The woman in pink-red-white-black clothes stooped a little and ruffled his hair, knocking his hat off. “We’re here to take care of you for a while! Come on, bud!” Riley backed up a bit. “Where are Edward and Jonathan?” He asked, nervous. “They’re, uh, working somewhere else right now. It was very sudden and urgent so they couldn’t say anything, but it’s okay, they’re fine.” Riley frowned. “They wouldn’t do that. They’d tell me first. They got caught by the bat, didn’t they?” The green woman nodded. “Yeah, ignore these two. You’re clearly smarter than the average teen. Your dads were reckless and the bat tossed em back in the birdhouse.” Harley frowned at her while Selina nodded. “Don’t worry, they usually get out in a few weeks anyway. They’ll be back before you know it. Why don’t you go get your stuff, and we’ll take you to our place, okay?”

“But what about the birds?” Riley protested. “Who’s gonna feed ‘em?”

“Kid, those crows up there? They’re crows. All the crows in the city, in fact. They don’t stay there all the time, they go out and get food themselves. That roof is just their primary hang-out spot. They’ll be fine, okay? This’ll all work out. Now go grab your stuff.” Riley reluctantly did as he was told.

After putting his few clothes, ferret feed, and some plushies into his bag, donning his hat, and grabbing Kuda’s cage, he was ready. He told this to the three women standing in the main room, and they said he looked adorable. They led him outside to a shiny, pretty car, a lustrous cobalt. “Wow,” Riley whispered to himself. “Hop in the back with Harley, kiddo. She’ll hold the ferret for you,” Selina says lightly, sliding into the driver’s seat. Ivy takes a seat next to her, and Harley hops in the back. “No thank you,” He says, climbing in. “Kuda doesn’t like strangers.” The ferret hissed as if to prove the point. Riley settles in the seat and attempts to wrap the strap around the cage, but it doesn’t work. Once he was belted into the seat, holding the cage firmly, Selina began driving. Harley leaned forward to turn on the radio, then was scolded by the other two for not wearing a seatbelt. “I don’t want clown brains all over my windshield, Harls,” Selina says dryly. “Even if those brains are smarter than the average one,” Ivy adds. Harley huffs and leans back into her seat, buckling herself in. Riley holds Kuda’s cage close, and the ferret curls up near him. God he needed to clean that cage. It smelled kinda bad. He’d have to look up how to do that later.

The house the three women lived in was big and shiny and beautiful. It wasn’t as pretty as the shimmering mystery castle on the island off the coast, the Wayne Manor, always shrouded in mist, but it was still quite amazing. Riley was led through several different doors and up a set of stairs until they reached a room smaller than the rest, but still very lush. The walls were a beautiful pastel teal, It had a big bed up against the wall near a window that had to be at least Riley’s height, and double that across. The window had cushions at the bottom, making an L-shaped seat on the cornerl, perfect for reading. The nightstand also had a lamp, and there was a fairly large bookcase next to the closet- on the side opposite the door, as so to not prohibit the opening- and it was full of novels. There was the perfect amount of space on top for Kuda’s cage. Riley looked about the room in awe. Even the bedsheets were amazing- The blanket a beautiful portrait of the night sky, and the sheets a scene of a path deep, deep in the wilderness. It was perfect.

“Can I live here forever?” He asked. The three ladies behind him laughed, a chorus of bells. “Oh, you’re just precious,” Selina giggled. His question remained unanswered. “So, school is starting soon, huh, Riley?” Harley asked the boy. “Oh, yeah, school,” Riley said, a little shocked. “I forgot that was even a thing. It’s only been like a week, but everything’s been topsy-turvy since I started living with Dad and Papa.” Riley frowned at his feet. Selina ‘aww’ed a bit, while Ivy grinned. “You call them Dad and Papa?” She asked, elation in her voice. “Yeah. Papa seemed a bit weird about it at first, but it turns out those two just get weird about some stuff. They’re weird.” Riley shrugged and put Kuda’s cage on the bookcase, pulling the ferret out and placing him on his head, just because. “Weird about what kind of stuff?” Ivy’s grin was malicious. “Ivy, don’t use the kid as blackmail,” Selina said dryly. “He’s too young to understand the irony of it.”

Riley tilted his head and was about to question the women further- he was 14, for god's sake, what about that would he not understand- when two giant fluffy mounds of energy charged past them and barreled into the kid. He yelped as he was knocked to the ground, and was immediately assaulted with affection from the two- “Hyenas?” Riley gasped. He tried to push one of them off, but they were set on licking every inch of his face. “Gross! Get off of me, you’re getting spit everywhere!” he screamed. There was no escape. He was trapped. Just as he had lost all hope, his ferret leapt to the rescue, hissing at them and lunging. The large canine-like animals yelped and backed off, intimidated by this tiny, angry white ball of malice. Riley sat up and put the fluffed-up ferret back on his head and stood up. “My hero!” He cheered. Selina sat up from where she had been knocked to the ground and shouted, “HARLEY! COME CONTROL YOUR DOGS!”

“Actually, ma’am, they aren’t dogs. They’re a species of animal all of their own, feliforms, in the hyaenidae family-” Ivy stopped him. “Where did a 14-year-old boy learn about hyenas?” She questioned. Riley scuffed the ground with a toe. “I wasn’t allowed to go on the internet, but there were a lot of science books at my house. They looked pretty,” He said sheepishly. It was then that Harley walked into the room, saying, “Actually, Selina, they aren’t dogs-”

“We know, Harley. Not only have you corrected us multiple times, this kid just gave us basically the same speech. Actually, it was a bit impressive, really.” Harley grinned at him. “Another hyena fan, huh? Do you wanna play with ‘em?” She asked excitedly. The excitement was contagious, and Riley found himself nodding. She grabbed him and picked him up with ease- whoa, she’s really strong- and then ran off with him, calling the hyenas, who ran close behind. Ivy and Selina watched all this passively. “She’s gonna break something,” Ivy observed. “As long as it isn’t the kid, it’ll be fine.” Selina resolved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, to clear this and future chapters up- in this universe there was a 5-year gap between seasons 1 and 2 of Young Justice, the TV show that has a prominent point in this fic. This universe has elements from Young Justice and other universes, such as the comic with Klarion being a soldier. I haven't read all- or even most- of that yet, so much of his character has been created from my theories based off of what i've seen from multiple sources. The main point is, Klarion isn't a complete dick or a complete villain, and all the characters are the ages they are in Season 2 (at least as of episode 17, the one i'm on.) This is so it's easier to incorporate Riley into the team. Thus, the characters introduced in Season 2 and later in Season 1 will also be introduced here, as those events have already happened. So Bart, L'gann, Garfield, and all of them are on the team as well.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!


	6. Episode 6: Don't Fuck With The Riddler, He Has A Gun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some loose ends are tied up. Not all of them, but some.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit i forgot this existed i know i promised no month long disappearances but y'know apparently my word means nothing. i'm also sick while writing this. but without any further ado, here you are!

_Meanwhile, that same day._

Edward was furious. No, he was more than furious, he was pissed beyond even words. He was so, so, so- so fucking _infuriated_. How **dare** the Bat not only foil his date with Jonathan, robbing the bank, but he also took him away from _his son_ without so much as a word? How dare he. He had gone too far this time, sedating them before they could even say anything, and Edward was not going to hold back.

As soon as the guards had walked down the corridor Edward flipped a bobby pin out of his pillowcase. “Already? Eddie, we just got here.” Jonathan said. “And we’re just leaving,” Edward hissed, malice in his voice. Jonathan raised his eyebrows but stayed silent. It was best not to argue with him like this. A soft click sounded as the lock gave way, and Edward put the pin back in his pillowcase and pushed the door open. He nodded to Harvey in the cell across from theirs, who just shook his head at them. “Later, Harvey,” Ed said, anger still tinting his voice as he walked with purpose down the hallway. Jonathan hesitantly followed, like a stray puppy. A guard turned the corner the same time as Edward and tried to grab him, but Edward didn’t even blink, just grabbed his arm and spun around, throwing him in front of Jonathan, who soccer kicked him back. Edward took his gun and ammo, then continued away. Jonathan blinked at him before grinning sadistically. “Y’know, darlin’, you look ravishing when you’re beating the shit out of guards,” He hummed, walking quickly to catch up. “I look ravishing all the time, Jonathan,” Edward huffed, but smiled back.

 

Was Bruce ever going to get a damn break? He had just returned to the Batcave after patrol and tossing the Riddler and Scarecrow back in Arkham, and was about to pull up the cameras around where he saw Klarion and that kid, when alarms popped up and the cameras switched to Ark Avenue-

“Are you fucking _kidding_ me?” Bruce said, throwing his hands in the air.

 

Jonathan cheered as he leaned out of the passenger side window, shooting at the cruiser chasing them. Edward yanked him back in and shouted, “Seatbelt!” Jonathan barely had time to click himself in before they took a hard turn, drifting beautifully through an intersection and continuing the chase, breaking the speed limit by a considerable amount. “Do ya even know where we’re goin’?!” Jonathan cried above the engine. “Well there’s only so many people Klarion could’ve called!” Edward replied. “So we’ll just check all of them!”

“Well bless yer heart, but if we get caught and get a longer sentence it’s your fault,” Jonathan huffed.

He wasn’t at the Iceberg, and Oswald was both surprised and disappointed in them. “Another one?” He said dryly. Edward shrugged.

He wasn’t with Garfield, which was probably for the best, because he’d get covered with dog fur and probably taught the basics of incredibly dangerous arson. Garfield offered to babysit all the same, and Jon said they’d consider it.

He wasn’t with Victor, which was also good, seeing as he only had a hoodie on and would freeze if he stayed in there for too long. Edward and Jonathan left quickly after checking.

That left the sirens- Klarion was way too smart to have called Jack. Probably. It was going to be the last place they checked and hopefully they wouldn’t have to, because Batman was probably at the manor as well, and they would just get tossed right back where they started.

Sure enough, they saw Kuda’s cage next to the window in the guest room, and the lights on in the room next to it. Jonathan simply climbed up the wall and broke the window, but Edward had a more difficult time climbing. He wasn’t as agile as the taller man in this front.

 

Riley was just trying to have a normal day for once, he really was. He was relaxing on the couch and watching TV, no magical animals, men in military-grade fursuits, or super villians. He was perfectly fine with staying with the sirens for a few days and waiting for his dads before school started, but life had other plans.

A crash sounded behind him, and he turned just as someone picked him up and tossed him in the air. He shrieked at the sudden momentary loss of gravity, but laughed when he saw who it was. “Papa!” He cheered. “Pumpkin seed! Hello!” Jonathan greeted. “What are you doing here? I thought you were in Arkham!” Jonathan turned to the broken window, looking at Edward as he climbed through. The man huffed and dusted himself off, before smiling at the two. “Hello, sunshine,” He says gently. The boy waved at him excitedly. “How did you get here so fast?” Riley asked again. “Well, we couldn’t just leave you alone right before school, now could we?” Riley tilted his head. “What do you mean?” Jonathan placed him down. His back kind of hurt from holding a 14-year-old up for so long. “Honey, school starts after tomorrow, we have to get you ready. Now go grab your stuff, okay? We’ll go shopping tomorrow.” Riley grinned.

“Seriously, guys? Did you have to break the window?” Selina asked from the doorway to the room. Edward cleared his throat. “Hello, Selina. Thank yo-” He started, but Selina shushed him. “I really don’t wanna listen to a rant right now, so just grab the kid and leave, okay?” She patted his head and then promptly walked out of the room. “And you’re paying for that window,” Ivy called from somewhere down the hall. Edward huffed angrily. “Well then, fine. Let’s go home, you two.” Riley laughed at him and ran off to get his stuff.


	7. Episode 7: School House Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley learns something important his first day of school.

First day of school.

Riley wasn’t nervous, really, but it was strange to go back to something so… normal and mundane after the weeks he’s had. It was, however, his first day of ninth grade, and that was a little cause for alarm. The classes were formatted differently- instead of all classes in one block with multiple rooms, like in middle school, each class was in a different part of the building, so he would have to run around a bit. He shifted his backpack and took a deep breath before walking confidently forward. Confidence was key- if you were confident, you were cool, and if you were cool, nobody would mess with you. It was a simple tactic he had learned through elementary and middle school, an easy way to make it to the top of the food chain. Edward had given him all the materials needed for school, along with tea for his lunch. Riley had also hidden Kuda in his bag, for good luck.

He pulled out the sheet with his class numbers on it, looking around. The building was enormous, but the hallways seemed pretty straightforward. He’d be spending the next four years of his life here.  
Goodie. At least it wasn’t boring.  
Riley really just hoped nobody recognized him. He thought he looked pretty different with his hair cut short, and his vision was much better with his new contacts, so he was sure nothing of the sort would happen, but it was an understandable fear.

First class was English, with a teacher named Mr. Broer. Broer? How do you pronounce that? Riley sat down in a chair near the door, dropping his bag on the ground next to him, pulling out his sketchbook and a pencil. He zoned out doodling crows when the bell rang, startling him a bit. He looked up as more of his new classmates flooded into the room, including some people he recognised. “Violet?” He asked excitedly. Her hair was now the same shade as her name, and pulled up into a ponytail. It was a good look. She turned and looked around, before her eyes landed on him. She stared for a moment, before saying in disbelief, “Riley?” Riley nodded enthusiastically. “You look… wow. I didn’t even recognise you.” Riley grinned. “I know, isn’t it great?” She smiled at him. “You look awesome, dude! But, y’know what would make you look more awesome?” Riley cocked his head, and Violet grinned, and pointed at his head. “Dyed hair.” Riley grinned back at her. Yeah, this year would be fine.

First period went off without a hitch- Edward had called the school and ~~threatened~~ informed them of Riley’s name change, so there was no problem there. The board was too scared to say anything after having the Riddler and Scarecrow threaten to show up personally and “Educate the board on tolerance.”

Second period was… Theater. Wonderful. Looking around, Riley saw no familiar faces- Scratch that. “That's Tim Drake,” Riley whispered in disbelief. The son of Bruce Wayne went to his school?

...Well, actually, that made sense, considering this was the best high school in the city, and he WAS in Gotham. Still, why was Tim in a theater class? You’d think the son of a billionaire would be all serious about keeping the company going. “Guess not,” Riley sighed as Tim and a red-haired boy started flirting with some poor girl. Everyone was seated on the benches and couches around the room, so he sat there as well. He found a cushy chair and curled up in it, putting his bag on the ground. He could faintly hear Kuda shifting in his bag, and hoped the scarf he had put in there was comfortable enough. As the teacher introduced himself, the redhead and Drake took seats near Riley. He eyed them warily before tuning in to the teacher, trying to ignore them. As the class went on and they started their first assignment, an icebreaker sheet, Drake and Redhead kept inching towards him. He glanced up as Tim sat in a seat next to his and the other kid sat on a bench nearby. He was the first to speak. “So, you’re new, huh? The name’s Bart.” He asks in a friendly manner. Riley wasn’t convinced. “You’re ‘new’ as well, if you’re in my class.” He slowly pulled his legs up towards him, the sheet on his sketchbook in his lap, and interrupted as Bart opened his mouth again. “Why are you talking to me.”

This is where Tim stepped in. “Hey, we’re just here to show a newbie the ropes,” He assured. His playboy grin wasn’t convincing at all. “Yeah, no. Whatever you want, you’re not getting it, now scram.” Riley narrowed his eyes, but it didn’t seem to intimidate Tim. Bart looked off-put more than anything, but kept at it. “C’mon, dude, we’re serious. You look pretty crash, you could do great here- if you followed our advice,” He grins devilishly, and it was rather cute, but Riley doubted his flirting was serious. And what was crash supposed to mean, anyway? Was it good or bad? What advice did they have for him, that was so honestly sinister… There was too much room for error with these two. Riley narrowed his eyes again, and this time they looked kind of cowed. “I said scram, loser. I want nothing to do with either of you. Get lost.” A hiss sounded from his bag. 'No, not now, Kuda, please,' he thought desperately. Bart and Tim gave each other a look and moved, not interacting with Riley for the rest of class. Thank god.

“Are you absolutely sure this is the kid Fate and Wally mentioned? I mean, I don’t see a question mark or burlap anywhere on him, and he looks nothing like Riddler or Scarecrow.” Tim hissed. Bart nodded. “For the last time, it’s him! When Fate talked to me during the stupid Reach invasion, he described a kid! That’s the kid! Brown, fluffy hair, rosy cheeks, a yellow vest, and the bag- there was a hiss from the bag! It’s gotta be him! He even had the intimidating stare Crane gives! I’m just surprised he resisted our combined charm,” Bart mused. Tim sighed. “Well, we have to get him on our side somehow. If he’s got the metagene, then we need to secure him before anyone else gets to him.” Bart nodded. “Maybe Jamie could help us.”

“Why is school so boring,” Riley whispered during math class. They were reviewing things he already knew, and it was annoying. He had already filled out the parts of the packet that they were reviewing and was doodling in his sketchbook, wishing his new brother Klarion was there. He’d figure out a way to make it fun, like lighting the pages on fire, or making the problems float in the air with magic, or something. Thunder rumbled outside as rain pattered against the windows. Riley looked up at the window for a moment before looking away again. He’d rather be outside, playing in the rain. The voice of his math teacher faded under the patter of the weather, torrenting relentlessly. He drifted off, outside, and up, into the clouds, to a land far away, dancing with the lightning...  
His head snapped up when the lunch bell rang. Finally, a chance to eat and stretch his legs. The high school campus was HUGE, and the students were allowed to eat outside. Score.

After grabbing the, admittedly terrible, school lunch and wishing he had just made something at home, he wandered outside to a bench and sat down. The rain had stopped, and the sun was shining, slowly evaporating the puddles around the benches. Riley opened up the package for his PB&J sandwich thing that was shaped like a circle, placing it on the tray. He opened up his bag and Kuda hopped out, shaking himself and poofing up. He settled in a warm spot of sunlight as Riley pulled his mug of iced tea from his bag. He sipped it tentatively, then took a bigger gulp when he tasted actual tea. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his new dads, but it was good to be cautious. As he set to eating the weird circle sandwich, another person walked up to him.

“Hi,” He said shyly, smiling at Riley. Riley stared blankly back at him, still chewing the edges off of the circle. The boy didn’t look off-put in the least, which Riley supposes is impressive, but he still doesn’t know who this person is and would like it if they left him alone. “I’m Jamie, Jamie Reyes,” The boy smiles at him and holds out his hand. Riley looks at it for a moment before looking back up at his eyes. “Look, I get that you’re trying to intimidate me into leaving, but it isn’t working,” Jamie says, smile never leaving his face. He definitely looks put-off now, but he seems determined. Riley can definitely respect that. He swallows and shakes the boy’s hand.

“My name is Riley,” He says confidently. Fake it till you make it- if he seemed confident, then people would think he was, and they’d respect him. Jamie nodded. “What do you want, Jamie Reyes?” Riley asks. He wouldn’t know it, but the way he spoke Jamie’s name was eerily similar to the way the Scarab said his name, which sent a small shock through him. Jamie tried not to show it. “Well, uh, I was. Wondering if I could…” Jamie looks at the ferret, sunning itself. “...Pet your ferret?” He smiles again. Riley looks unimpressed. “Kuda doesn’t like strangers.” Again, as if cued, Kuda sits up and hisses at him before laying back down. “Are you friends with, um. What was his name, Bart? Bart and Tim?” Riley says. Jamie nods. “Well, you seem kind of trustworthy, so i’ll bite. What’s your deal? Do you want to sell me drugs or something?” He spoke so nonchalantly about it that Jamie kind of sputters. “N-What? No! Kind of the opposite. Listen, this is gonna sound insane, but you seem like the type of kid to not lose it.” Riley raises an eyebrow. Was this kid on drugs? “Have you heard of something called a ‘metagene’?” At the word, Kuda sat up again, staring intesely at Jamie. Riley thinks. “Yeah- that was the thing that the Reach were looking for, right?” Jamie nodded. “Okay, so what about it? I don’t see what this has to do with me.” Jamie took a deep breath. “Well, uh. Actually, this might be better if I just- uh-” He looked around, but the courtyard was conveniently empty except for them. He took a deep breath. “Okay, here goes-” And metal plates start folding around him.

Riley stops moving, holding the two mutilated sides of the circle of PB&J in taco-like positions, and stares as Blue Beetle stands before him. Kuda gets up and walks over to sit next to him. “Okay. So, now that I have evidence literally on me. We, the Young Justice League, think that you may have the metagene. The thing that makes the speedsters fast, that makes me eligible for this Scarab, that lets supers have their powers, and so on.” Riley clears his throat. “So, you think that i’m a super and my powers haven’t awakened yet or whatever?” Jamie nods, and mentally sends a signal to the Scarab to put the suit away. It tells him to be cautious, but follows the directions. Riley watches with fascination as the metal plates pull away, leaping up and going around Jamie to watch them fold in on themselves and slide under his shirt. “Amazing,” He whispers. Then he looks up to see Jamie raising an eyebrow at him. Riley clears his throat again and sits back down, putting the PB&J tacos onto his lunch tray. “Well, it’s hard not to believe someone who just turned into a beetle and back, i’ll admit. But what do you want me to do about this ‘metagene’, exactly?”

“Be careful,” Jamie warns. “Other people, bad guys like the Reach, are going to want to use your powers, whatever they are, for evil. You have to stay under the radar. I, for one, hope your powers don’t awaken,” He says gravely, “Because this life isn’t a fun one. It’s usually hard, and painful, and desperate. And sometimes, we almost don’t win. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” He looks Riley in the eyes. “If your powers do ever awaken, though, you’ll know where to find us.” And with that, he walks away.

Riley watches him before looking at Kuda. “So much for being normal, huh?” Kuda chitters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there you have it. Sorry for being gone for so long, i've been dealing with stuff. But! Here it is, Chapter 7, where I finally write plot!
> 
> Now that my writer's block is gone and I'm settling into school more, i'm planning on writing more, but we'll see. Stay tuned!
> 
>  
> 
> ...this was four pages, but it looks so short on here...


	8. Episode 8: Metagene

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley considers the revelations from his day at school. This happens immediately after the last chapter, when he gets home.

**The same day, a few hours later.**

“A metagene,” Riley said. He lifted his hand from the mattress and looked at it. “A metagene in  _me_?” It couldn’t be true. Riley wasn’t special in any way, he had been told that enough. He knew it was true. And right when he had come to terms with that, he gets adopted by two notorious criminals and finds out he has a fucking magic DNA strand? Life was throwing him the biggest curve ball yet. There was no way he was a metahuman, there had to have been some mistake. “There’s no way, right Kuda?” Kuda chitters at him and nuzzles into his hair. “I can’t tell if that was a yes or no, but i’m taking it as a no,” Riley sighed. Kuda made a chitter suspiciously like a laugh. Riley sat up on his bed- his actual bed, complete with sheets and a bedframe, courtesy of his dads’ carpenter friend- and lifted the ferret up to eye-level. “Are you magic?” He asked seriously. The ferret stared at him, completely silent.

  
After a moment of staring at each other, Riley put Kuda down, and the ferret curled up next to him. Riley sighed and flopped back onto the bed. “I don’t have enough spoons for this,” He muttered.

A burst of light from behind his door lit up his room for a moment, and then a familiar voice rang out. “Anybody home?” Klarion asked, his scratchy voice instantly recognizable. Riley sat up a bit and reached for his door, futilely trying to open his door with his mind. He fell over onto the ground, the loud thump alerting Klarion to his presence. He opened the door slowly, and found Riley sprawled on the ground, a blank expression on his face. “You alright?” He asked, and Riley glanced up at him. “My function level is none,” The boy replied. Teekl sauntered in and sat down next to him, flipping her tail over his face. He blew at it, trying to get it off, but just got fur in his mouth. He sat up and spat, trying to get it out, and Teekl purred, her job done.  
Klarion sat down next to Riley and gestured vaguely at the room. “nethgirB siht ecalp pu,” He cast, and the window shutters opened, allowing the afternoon light into the room. “What’s going on with you, huh? You’re usually at least excited to see Teekl,” Klarion scoffed. Said cat hopped into his lap and laid down, looking at Riley with the worry Klarion was hiding. Riley stared out the window. “Y’know Impu- I mean, Kid Flash?” He asked after a moment. Klarion nodded hesitantly, wondering what his opponent had to do with the change in his adopted brother’s mood. “...Yes?”  
“He said I had a metagene,” Riley said quietly. Klarion was silent for a moment. “Is that a bad thing?” Riley blinked and looked at him. “What?” Klarion gestured vaguely with his hand again, but said no spell. “You have something inside you that makes you more unique than the other 99 percent of the population, and you’re sad about it?” Klarion looks at him. “Why? Shouldn’t you be excited about that?” Riley stares at him. “No,” He said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Why should I be excited about not being normal?” He looked down at his hands to find them full of ferret. “Wh- Hi, Kuda,” He murmured. “Why should I be happy that there is now no way I can ever really be normal?” He lifted Kuda up and put him on his shoulders, where the rodent nuzzled him. “I mean, i’ve been trying to be normal for years, despite my accent and my OCD and my ADHD and my autism and all the other shit that’s wrong with me,” He began, sighing deeply. “And now I find out that there’s no way i’ll ever be normal anyways because i’m _magic_?” Riley threw up his hands. “What do I do with that, anyways?” He sighed again. “I just want people to like me,” He lamented. Klarion sat next to him in silence, unsure as to what to say. He had never been good at comfort, had never learned sympathy or empathy. Teekl stood, stretched, and stepped over into Riley’s lap before curling up again. Her purrs resounded with Riley. He looked at Klarion, who seemed somewhat sullen, but smiled at him. “Sometimes not being normal is the normalest thing that can happen,” He says. “Besides, this is a world with superheroes and supervillains, and you live not only in supervillain central, but with two of them. Why not embrace it?”

Riley smiled tiredly back at him. and they looked to the window, where a bird sang from somewhere. “Why is there a bird in the city?” Riley asked. Klarion shrugged. “There are trees somewhere, I think, and don’t pigeons sing?” Riley pushed him. “Pigeons do NOT sing.” Klarion laughed and flopped back, pretending to be dead. “Get up, you lousy man, i’m not done with you yet!” Riley jumped on him and put him in a headlock. Klarion shrieked indignantly, and Teekl and Kuda leapt onto the bed, out of the crossfire, to watch.

And just like that, everything was normal for a time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter was a bit shorter, but I just wanted to establish Riley and Klarion's relationship a bit, and show how Riley feels about the metagene. Edward and Jonathan show up next chapter, they're probably doing something here.


	9. Episode 9: Happy Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley's first birthday party.

_October 14th, some time in the afternoon, after school._  
The fair was in Gotham this year. With Joker a piece of history, presumed dead by the city, Gotham was free to have their once-famous carnivals once more- though it took a while for people to trust them, expecting a killer clown around every corner.

The fairgrounds were one of Riley’s favorite places. The rides, the games, the food that could put a speedster in a coma, he found it all wonderful. He loved to run around the grounds, and he had fond memories of it. He hadn’t been in years, when he was little and the Joker was first on the rise. After the clown surfaced and made his debut, the fair had closed down, not wanting another incident.But now, the citizens of Gotham were free to enjoy the fair once more- although it was very much absent of clowns. Riley missed the fair.

When Riley had told Edward and Jonathan it was his birthday, they were surprised. “You didn’t tell us before now? We could’ve gotten you presents,” Edward asked. Riley blinked at him. Presents? He hadn’t gotten presents since he was little. “But big kids don’t get birthday presents,” Riley said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Edward looked shocked, and Jonathan’s voice rang from the other room, “Everyone gets presents, whether they’re young, old, or dying. It’s a thing we do.” Riley cocked his head, and then looked insulted. “I haven’t gotten a present in years!” He cried, outraged at this new information. He had been robbed, by his own father, no less! Edward laughed at his indignant expression. “Don’t worry, son,” He said, ruffling the teen’s hair, “I’ll get you a whole bunch of presents to make up for it, okay? But you’ll have to wait a few days for them to get here,” He smiled at Riley, and it sent a warmth through the boy. He liked being called son.  
Possibly the biggest surprise to Riley was Klarion appearing again. “I heard it was your birthday,” He said. Riley nodded. “Yeah, it is,” He said hesitantly.

“Well,” The witch boy began, “I can’t make something right here on the spot for you, so how about we go to the fair? I saw you looking at the posters a few days ago, and i’ve checked- it’s clown-free.” Riley’s eyes lit up, but then he considered Klarion’s appearance. His blue skin, pointy horns, pilgrim outfit, and the maine coon draped on his shoulders would cause a lot of… unwanted attentions. He opened his mouth to say so when Klarion looked down himself and snapped his fingers. “That’s what I almost forgot!” He said, and then snapped again. This time, magic danced from his hands and around him, obscuring him from vision completely. When the red magic dispelled, a pale boy Klarion’s height was standing in front of Riley, clad in a hoodie, jeans, and a baseball cap. He had a backpack on, and Teekl’s head was poking out of it. “There,” Klarion said. “How’s that for a disguise?” The cap hid his horns, and his red eyes had become a brilliant amber. He looked pretty normal, besides the cat in his bag. “Does Teekl get a disguise?” Riley asked curiously. “She gets a bag for hiding in,” Klarion stated. Teekl slid down into the bag, out of view, for an example. “Cool,” Riley chirped. “Magic is so handy!” Klarion nodded at him. “Alright, kid, let’s go to the fair.”

The fair was magical, in a different way.

Klarion got them in without paying by teleporting, and Riley wasn’t amused but he couldn’t really argue. He immediately ran off towards the closest ride, which happened to look like a death machine. “Riley,” Klarion said monotonously, but there was an underlying panic there. “Riley,” He said louder, taking a step forwards. Riley got up on the platform. The line had been short, it was early. Klarion watched in horror as he was strapped down in the strange, seat-like car, with bars on the front. “Oh god Edward is going to kill me,” Klarion covered his mouth and whispered. He simply stood there and watched as the ride went through its motions. He expected Riley to be shaking or dizzy, but he got off laughing. “That was kind of lame,” He said. Klarion stared at him. “You are a god,” He whispered. Riley was already heading off towards an intimidating roller coaster in the distance. Klarion knew then that he had gotten himself into something he did very much not want. “I hate loud noises,” He whispered.

“I hate fast things,” Klarion said when Riley asked him to go on one of the rides with him. The boy called it a “Bobsled Ride”, and claimed it was fun. Klarion took one look at the rapid cars spinning around the axis of the ride, the people screaming and being forced to the edge by the G forces, and dipped out. “Why?” Riley asked innocently. Klarion stared into the distance as memories surfaced, the taxi speeding down the street, narrowly avoiding other cars, driving through red lights. The terror he felt as the delinquents cackled around him. He could almost hear faint jazz playing a noir tune. “We don’t talk about it,” He said, still staring into the distance. Riley blinked at him. “I mean, alright,” He shrugged and skipped away to the line. Klarion decided he’d be fine and walked off to find something that interested him. Most of the games seemed easy, the face paint seemed silly, and the rides were loud and unpleasant. He glanced up at the sky, already darkening. He’d let Riley handle himself for a bit, the kid was more than capable. Besides, he had brought the ferret with him, and Klarion was fairly certain that thing was a rabid animal with affection only for the boy. He felt the ring on his hand burn bright, stinging his fingers. A summons.

He had something to take care of.

Riley bounced off the ride, giggling, and picked up his bag. It was small, just enough room for his phone, headphones, and Kuda. He rubbed Kuda’s head before checking his phone. Edward had sent a short text wishing him luck with the games at the fair, but that was it. Riley stood up, searching the crowds for Klarion, but he was nowhere to be found. Riley shrugged, used to being left alone, and walked off towards another ride, seeking the adrenaline rush. The wind on his face as he whizzed past was like nothing else. He simply laughed when the rides dipped or spun, it was so delightful to him. He wasn’t scared, he was exhilarated by the perceived danger. He knew he was actually safe, so he could enjoy the thrill of the ride at ease. He ran about playing until the sun began to set, losing track of time. Then, his phone vibrated in his bag.

 _Unknown Number (Recieved 7:48)_  
Riley

 _Unknown Number (Recieved 7:48)_  
Come up here

He stared blankly at his phone for a moment, then decided to try his luck.

 _Me (Read 7:50)_  
okay but where is “up here”

Riley waited for a response, then something told him to look up. He glanced up towards the sky, and saw a hill leading away from the fair. There was someone sitting on it.

 _Me (Read 7:52)_  
wait, up there?

 _Unknown Number (recieved 7:52)_  
Yes

Riley shrugged. “Alright, why not?” He walked to the fence blocking the hill from reach and studied it. It was just a regular 6-foot fence. There wasn’t even any barbed wire at the top or anything. He climbed up the fence and hopped down easily. “Okay, that was simple. I thought climbing fences was harder,” He muttered, walking up the steep incline of the hill. It levelled off at the top, and he got a good look of who was waiting for him. “Oh, hi Klarion,” Riley greeted sunnily. “If I knew it was you, i’d have already been up here!” Klarion didn’t turn, he just gestured the boy over. “Shh, Riley, the show is starting,” He whispered conspiratorially. “What show?” Riley stage-whispered back. Klarion pointed at the dark sky, and a moment after, a loud boom roared through the sky and lights flared into life. Riley gasped and leaned back as fireworks exploded in the air above the fair, watching in wonder at the colors.

Klarion had flopped onto his back to watch, and Riley leaned back too. The light show only lasted a few minutes, but it was still amazing to him. “I’ve never seen real fireworks before,” He said, sitting up when they stopped. Klarion grinned at him. “Wait, wait, the finale isn’t done yet,” And pushed Riley back down onto the ground. Riley opened his mouth to question when a brilliant array of colors and shapes filled the sky, roaring into life. It was definitely the loudest one yet. He gasped in amazement at the colored words stating that “Gotham Rules!”, dazzling him and floating down gently before disappearing into the darkness. Klarion looked slightly uncomfortable, but Riley didn’t notice. “That was amazing!” He cried. He looked towards his brother. “That was so amazing, how did you know it would happen?” Klarion grinned back at him. “Edward told me, he lived here before Joker ruined the fair.” Then he paused. “Wait, didn’t you?” Riley shrugged. “We always left before dark,” He said simply. Klarion nodded. “Well, it’s late. Let’s get you home, kiddo. The night isn’t over yet!”

Riley was once more shocked when they arrived home. The warehouse had been filled with bright colors and lights, and Edward had pulled the table into the middle of the main room. It was covered with ribbons and boxes, and balloons floated mid-air. “Hey, buddy!” Edward greeted him when he walked through the door. Riley took slow steps forward, not really believing what he was seeing. “What is this?” He asked. “It’s your birthday party,” Jon said, walking into the room. Riley blinked at the bright lights strung around the room, golden christmas lights and pumpkin-shaped bulbs filling the room with light. “It’s not my best, but it’s still pretty darn good,” Edward preened.

The boy slowly walked forwards to the table, staring at the boxes. “Are you okay, buddy?” Ed asks softly, placing a hand on Riley’s shoulder. Riley realized with a start that his eyes were tearing up, and he rubbed them away and smiled. “I’ve never had a birthday party before,” He says, watery, and something in Edward and Jonathan’s hearts crack at that. They both silently glanced at each other as Riley slowly reached to the smallest box in front of him. “Are these all for me?” He asked. Klarion slid in front of him on the other side of the table. “Well yeah, who else would they be for?” He reached over and ruffled Riley’s hair. “It’s your special day, kid.” Riley smiled and pulled the wrapping off of the box.

It was his special day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am So Sorry i disappeared for a month but I have TWO chapter for you


	10. Episode 10: Something Entirely New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween doesn't go as planned, but it's okay.

_October 31st, 3:35 PM._  
Riley was so excited, more excited than usual. One of his birthday presents had been a halloween costume, seemingly hand-made for him. He had no idea how Klarion had gotten his measurements- it had to be Klarion- but he was sure it was magic. The costume was a rabbit outfit, yet it was a strange one. It included a light blue mask, with ears at alert position at the top. The mouth was in a large, sharp grin, stretching like the Cheshire Cat’s along the bottom of the mask. It also had markings, teal and brown. A teal heart was over the right eye, and the ears were tipped with the aqua and brown. He was also given brown fingerless gloves, boots, and a vest with a wiry tail attached to it. Literally, it was a long, thin wire, sewn into the back of the jacket. It was tipped with a fluffy ball of faux fur, the same colors as the mask and gloves. He could bend the wire and it would stay in that shape, simply bobbing with his movements. He bent it so that it would splay behind him and wave as he walked, and then did a spin. The jacket itself was similar to one of Riley’s, a pastel yellow vest with a pale red lightning bolt on it, similar to the Flash’s symbol. He wore a grey shirt under the vest, and turned to the other boxes he had yet to open.

He was glad to have gotten presents, but to have gotten so many for the first time was overwhelming, so he had pushed most of them into his closet for later. He looked at the mysterious box he had found the costume in, pushing the mask up onto his head. There was a note at the bottom he hadn’t seen before. Come to think of it, he never saw it on the table with the rest of the boxes, he must’ve just tossed it into the pile without thinking. He reached into the box and pulled the note out, careful not to drop it. The oblong shape of the box made fishing out the small paper inconvenient, but Riley managed to finally grab the note. He read it out loud. “Huh… ‘For Zippy.’ Who’s Zippy? Is that me?” He pondered, then shrugged. He tossed it and the box somewhere behind him and looked at the sizeable pile of other presents. He was sure they were wonderful, but they still unnerved him. He’d never gotten presents before, and now he had so many...

He was saved from his indecision by Jonathan, calling his name from the other room. “Coming, dad,” He called back, and pulled his mask back on. He pulled Kuda from his cage, where the ferret had been watching him, and placed him on his shoulders. “Let’s go, Kuda,” He said decisively. The ferret chittered at him, curling up in the curve of his vest collar.

Well, Jonathan and Klarion seemed excited for halloween.

Edward was wearing a different outfit than his usual green suit, instead wearing a more medieval outfit, but with face paint similar to a cat’s face. “What’re you gonna be, dad?” Riley asked Edward, who smiled at him. “Why, I am a sphinx, is it not obvious?”

Riley giggled and turned to Klarion, who was wearing a long, flowing cloak with a night sky embroidered onto it. The purple trim faded up the fabric to a grey, and the white-yellow stars popped out from the deep shades. He did a little spin to show off, revealing his black shirt and space-print tights. “What do you think, buddy?” He asks, grinning. Riley hummed, pretending to consider it. “You need a witchy hat,” He said truthfully. Klarion reached up to his head, and then turned. “Teekl,” He called, and his tiger stalked into the room, his hat on her head. “Thank you,” He chirped, placing it over his horns. Teekl morphed back into her smaller form, pouncing onto his shoulders. “You look like a classic witch, all you need is a broom!” Riley laughed, clapping. Klarion bowed at the applause.

Lastly, the boy turned to Jonathan, who stood out with his height. He was wearing a scarecrow outfit, as predicted, but not his normal one. This one was more akin to the Scarecrow from The Wizard Of Oz. There was straw poking out of his sleeves and collar, and patches of different-colored fabric sewn over his shirt and pants. His mask was different, as well; instead of the loose stitching in his normal mask, the mouth was sewn shut in a sunny smile. The eye holes were still dark voids, and the eyebrows arching up in black stitching made quite the uncanny expression. It was unnerving in its own way. “I like your costumes,” Riley said to his new family. “Your is rather unique, Riley,” Klarion said. “It looks good.” Riley smiled, not voicing his confusion. If Klarion hadn’t made it, then who did? It was probably Eddie. He liked to sew and all that, right?

“So, when are we gonna go out and get candy?” Riley asked, and he could tell Jonathan was grinning under the mask. “As soon as you’re ready and the sun is down,” He laughs, voice low and scratchy. Kuda shifted in Riley’s vest collar, and the boy reached up to rub his head. “Let’s go, then!” He said impatiently, causing the family to laugh. The warehouse hadn’t been this lively in quite a while, but it seemed Riley’s presence shined a light of mirth in the dull place. Edward stayed back to hand out candy to any possible stragglers- if they answered his riddles correctly, that is- and the three other boys were on their way.

Jonathan’s method of candy-collecting was odd, to say the least. He snuck about the rooftops, scaring any children who passed under him and taking the candy bags they dropped, while Riley and Klarion went about the normal way, simply demanding sweets from strangers, like normal kids do. Eventually, Jonathan came down onto the ground and walked with his sons through the worse streets, an intimidating shadow behind the teens, so as to discourage anyone from trying to take them on. When they got to the brightly lit streets of the rich part of Gotham, with all the large mansions and full-size candy bars, Jon made to climb back up, but stopped at the sound of teens laughing. Riley and Klarion were walking towards a small clump of kids, probably above Riley’s grade, laughing at their friend, who had tripped and fallen onto his candy, now mourning the loss of his treats. Riley bounced up and immediately became friends with the teens, while Klarion simply hung back and watched.

Jonathan trusted his boys to be fine, but soon, disaster struck.

The teens started teasing Riley about his costume, at first just little laughs at the way his tail bobbed as he walked, and then the heart on his mask, and so on. Riley was used to teasing, and took it in stride, laughing with them and turning the joke from himself to the rest of them, and everything was slightly okay. And then they started teasing Klarion.

The witch boy seemed unfazed, and probably was, simply ignoring the comments on how “girly” his outfit was and kept walking with his brother. However, Teekl, who was earlier resting calmly on the boy’s shoulders, began to ruffle her fur up and glare at the teenagers. One girl, dressed as a vampire and covered in glitter, commented on how she and the rest of the girls should probably just give the candy they got to their boyfriends, seeing as they didn’t want to gain weight. Then she looked at Klarion and said, “You’re gay, right? You might wanna do the same, boys don’t like fat people.” Klarion stopped in place, and looked appalled at the sentence that had come out of the girl’s mouth. Riley looked stuck between horror and anger, covering his mouth and staring at the girl. Jonathan, who had overheard the comment from the lamppost, turned slowly and gawked at the girl. She noticed their silence and turned to see their looks, and asked, “What? Is something on my face?” In a panicked voice. Soon, Klarion snapped out of his stupor and cried, “What the everloving fuck is wrong with you people?” Riley blinked and turned to look at him, along with the rest of the group. “Pardon?” A boy asked, dressed in a matching vampire costume as the glittery girl who spoke earlier. “I mean, wh- what the shit? What the actual hell made you think saying that was a good idea?” The witch spoke, his voice getting progressively higher as he tried and failed to process the mental state of the aggressively cishet teenagers. “What- what on earth would possess you to not only out someone completely by accident, but insult any overweight people and any female-aligned person who wants to eat their own damn halloween candy, all in one sentence? What the shit?” Klarion threw his hands in the air, Teekl hopping down off his shoulders to avoid being thrown off by his grandiose hand motions. Jonathan, having climbed down the lamppost at this point, stalked over to the circle of light in the middle of the street, where Klarion was attempting to show the teenagers the light. “Klarion, now is not the time,” He says quietly from the edge of the darkness, causing the teens to jump. Riley turned and looked at him, lifting his mask and mouthing “Help us” to his father.

Unfortunately, one of the other teens, the one that had fallen on his candy, saw this, and gasped loudly. “Eleanor?” He cried, delighted. Riley froze at the name, eyes widening and pupils dilating in terror. The rest of the teens turned and looked at Riley, smiling happily as they recognized the boy’s face. Before they could say anything further, Klarion stepped in front of his little brother, frowning fiercely at them. “No, I believe you have my brother here mixed up with someone else,” He said cooly, his voice the opposite of the rage burning in his eyes. Riley clung onto his cloak, shaking in fear, and Teekl wound around his legs. Twin hisses burst from her and Kuda, and Jonathan chose this time to make his entrance into the light. “Klarion, stand down,” He commanded, in a quiet but firm tone. Klarion glanced at him before turning his glare back to the teens, blue fading into his skin. “No, I think they have a lesson to learn,” Klarion growled. Their unadulterated bigotry and ignorance reminded him of Limbo Town, the place he’d rather not remember ever again.

The teenagers were saved by Jonathan, whisking Klarion up under one arm and pulling Riley behind him with the other. “ **Now, children,** ” Crow began, his voice a low, rumbling hiss emanating from the man’s throat, “ **I’ll spare your lives this once, but if I ever find you makin’ these mistakes again, you’ll find I won’t be as kind.** ” The teens backed up as they recognized the Scarecrow, turning and running away in fear. They dropped their bags of candy in their panic, and as Crow pulled out his phone and called Edward, he stalked forwards and picked them up. Bringing them back to Riley, he whispered, “ **For your troubles, little Sparrow,** ” and handed them over. Riley gripped the bags, still shivering, but smiled. “Can we go home?” He asked, his voice as soft as a kitten’s fur. Crow nodded, placing the somewhat calmer Klarion down to comfort his brother. “ **Eddie,** ” Crow said into the phone when Edward picked up. “Wh- Crow? What’s happened, are you and the boys alright?” He sounded panicked, and Crow smiled under the mask. “ **We ran into some trouble, can you come pick us up? We’re at the corner of Main Street and Beauty Lane, under the street lights,** ” His voice was still rough, but gaining some of its color back as he spoke. “Okay, i’ll be right there,” Edward says, and continues sternly, “You can tell me what happened when we get home. Don’t go that far across the city again, okay? I don’t want you getting lost amongst the rich,” Edward’s voice was teasing, but still strict. Crow rolled his eyes and nodded, though Edward couldn’t appreciate it. “ **Okay, Eddie,** ” He agrees, and Edward huffs and hangs up, presumably to get the car. Crow takes a deep breath and lets Jonathan back to the front, who immediately turns to his sons. Klarion was hushing a still-scared Riley, holding him close and petting his hair. “It’s okay, Riley, they’re gone, they can’t do anything,” Klarion murmurs to the boy. “They recognized me,” Riley whispers. “They know who I am, they’re gonna tell everyone what I look like, everyone’s gonna know,” He’s shaking hard, stuttering out the words. Jonathan pulled him close, holding him and humming a lullaby. “It’s okay, Riley, it’ll all be okay,” Klarion whispers, joining the hug.

Edward found them all, under the flickering street light, hugging Riley close. They drove back to the warehouse in silence, and Riley retreated to his room, not even bothering to sort his candy into piles like usual. He took his costume off, put Kuda back in his cage, and flopped onto his bed, sighing heavily. “Today did not go as expected,” He spoke to the air. Kuda chirped at him. “Yeah, buddy, I know,” He says, looking at the window and out to the sky above.

“Tomorrow is another day.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the second chapter for tonight's update, I hope you enjoy! The last chapter of this first year should be up. Soon. I don't know.


	11. Chapter 11: Happy Holidays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley enjoys a city-wide snowball fight, a boss battle, and getting kidnapped by Batman. Just another normal day in Gotham City.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS WAS 8 WHOLE PAGES, THE LONGEST CHAPTER YET. MERRY FUCKING CHRISTMAS IM DEAD

_ Tuesday, December 12th. _

 

“Oh, man, oh boy, oh man!” Riley cheered as he hopped out of bed. It was December! Granted, it had been December for more than a week already, but still! School actually had given an extra week off for Hanukkah, so Riley could wake up later than usual. He hopped out of bed and wandered into the main room of the hideout-turned-house, and walking over to Edward as he lit a candle. Riley opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when he heard the man saying quiet prayers as he placed the candle back in what Riley recognized as a menorah.

 

When he stepped back, done, he bumped into the teen, who bounced around him to watch the flame dance. “Hello, Riley, and good morning,” Edward greeted, walking to the kitchen. “Are we gonna celebrate Hanukkah?” Riley asked, standing up and hopping after his dad, careful not to bump the table with the candles. “Yes, I celebrate Hanukkah, and Jonathan doesn’t really celebrate any holiday other than Halloween. Klarion celebrates his own thing, if I remember correctly- which I always do- though, so when he pops up, you can ask him about that,” The man replied, opening the cupboard. “Riley, do you want cereal or pancakes for breakfast?” Riley hummed. “Can we have scrambled eggs?”

“Sure, buddy.”

 

Klarion showed up around the time the eggs were done, and found himself immediately tackled to the ground by Riley in an “Attack hug!”

“Uh,” He said, frozen at the sudden contact. “Hello.” Riley hopped back up on his feet, pulling his brother with him. “Hi Klarion! We’re celebrating Hanukkah! Do you have a holiday too?” Klarion laughed quietly at his enthusiasm, “Actually, yes!” Riley turned at stared at him expectantly. “Well, the last holiday this year I celebrate is Yule, which starts on the day Hanukkah ends, December 20th.” Riley nodded along as Klarion filled him in on the lore of his wiccan holidays, Edward sometimes popping in some info on Hanukkah. Riley absorbed all of the info eagerly, delighted at the prospect of learning something school wouldn’t teach him.

 

Soon, Jonathan emerged out of the room at the smell of food, judging by the sound of the bedroom door opening and closing, but without even looking, Edward called, “Jonathan, if you walk in here in nothing but boxers again, I swear I will make a deathtrap with your name lovingly carved into the steel.” Jonathan laughed, a gruff sound, and then walked back into the room. A few moments later, he appeared in the kitchen, this time wearing a baggy shirt and overalls. Edward spared a glance behind him as he plated the eggs and bacon, and then smiled. “Good morning, darling,” he said softly to him, placing the breakfast in front of the two boys and then kissing his husband. Klarion made a gagging sound while Riley gave a quiet “Aww,” and Jonathan winked conspiratorially at the boys, grinning at Klarion’s scandalized look. “Mornin’,” Jon whispered right back, kissing him again.

 

Edward eventually pushed Jonathan away, presumably to make more food or save Klarion from the PDA, but Jon pulled him right back by the belt loops, grinning at him. “Jonny,” Edward said in a stern tone, but he was smiling too. “What, we have kids and suddenly I can’t kiss my husband good morning?” Klarion squawked from the table while pushing Teekl away from his plate, “Um, excuse me! Kissing isn’t the same as furiously making out in front of us while we try to eat!” Jonathan laughed again at that, a deeper chuckle, while Edward flushed and tried to wiggle out of Jon’s arms. “Jonathan, we must spare the children,” He said, flustered. Jonathan gave a long-suffering sigh but released him, sitting down at the table with his sons. “Do you want eggs too, dear?” Edward asked, reaching for the pan and eggs. “I’ll make something later, don’t worry,” Jonathan replied, and then turned to Riley. “How’s your school so far, buddy?”

 

Riley swallowed his eggs without chewing, to Klarion’s grimace, and then said monotonously, staring into Jonathan’s eyes, “Robin, Blue Beetle, and the new Kid Flash informed me that I have been identified with the metagene, meaning I have dormant superpowers inside my body that could trigger at any stressful moment. I have also been annoyed by multiple cishet boys, including but not limited to a new kid, Blake Brown or Bowen or something, who has decided to call me a ‘she-he,’ which isn’t even a term, with no basis of me ever previously being female, given that all records of that have been erased and so far I have not seen anyone recognize me other than the kids at halloween, who probably don’t go to my school. Also, I have straight A’s in all my classes, I have made 5 new friends, and have eaten PB&J sandwiches for almost all of my lunches.” Then he stopped and took another bite of his breakfast.

 

Jon and Klarion waited to see if he’d continue, and then Edward interrupted, sitting down as well. “Sorry, that kid said  _ what? _ ” He bristled, but Riley waved his hand in an “I-Don’t-Care” gesture. “He’s probably just implying i’m gay or girly or something.” Edward quietly seethed, and while Jonathan could feel Crow radiating anger as well, he calmed himself and went for another approach. “What was that about a metagene?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. Riley sighed and looked to Klarion, who shrugged silently. “It’s this special gene that most supers have that gives them their powers,” Riley said shortly. Klarion sighed and explained further, “It’s dormant until something sets it off, like extreme stress, exposure to dark matter, getting struck by lightning, etcetera. The Reach was harvesting humans who exhibited it last year, and almost grabbed me before I fought their stupid scouts off.”

 

Jonathan nodded for a moment before resting his arm on the table and summarizing, “So you’re a dormant superhero?” Riley shrugged. “I guess so, yeah. I don’t feel very super though. Hey, Klari, how’d you know that?” Klarion shrugged and put his plate on the floor, presumably for Teekl to eat the last of his food. “I came up here to learn about all the different ways people could make a difference in the world, Riley, I wanted to be someone before I died. A lot of what I learned is useless trivia, but hey, I can’t be picky.” Riley nodded at him, then looked back at his dads. Edward looked angry and worried, looking at his clenched fists, while Jonathan had his chin on his hand, looking contemplative and far-off, amber eyes staring into the distance. Riley was a little nervous from the tension building from the two, but he wasn’t sure how to lighten the situation. Klarion saved him, though, when he leaped up and cried out joyously, “It’s snowing!”

 

Riley turned and hopped up from his seat, running with Klarion and Teekl up the loft’s ladder and to the windows to watch the snow fall. “You two be careful up there,” Jonathan called. “If you want to go outside, you have to make Riley a coat, Klari, I haven’t gotten him one yet,” Edward supplied. Klarion and Riley stared at the sky, entranced. Finally, Klarion turned to his brother and asked, hushed, “Do you wanna go outside?” Riley nodded silently, stars in his eyes. Klarion hopped up, pulling Riley with him. “Alright! Stand still so I can get the measurements right, I don’t wanna accidentally make it too small,” He smiled, and Riley stood as still as he could. Klarion snapped his fingers, and a wispy red smoke floated around the boys, settling on Riley. It thickened and swirled before dissipating, leaving behind a thick blue hooded coat with white fluffy trim. Riley unbuttoned it and felt the inside. “Ooh, cashmere,” He hummed. Klarion looked down at himself and snapped his fingers again, this time causing sparks to fly and glitter in the air. Riley blinked from the bright flashes, and when he opened his eyes he found Klarion in similar snow attire, a dark red coat and snow pants, along with gloves. He held his arms out and did a little spin. “What do you think?” He asked, grinning, and Riley put his chin in his hand, pretending to be deep in thought. “Wait, i’ve got it!” He cried, and dashed down the ladder to his room. He emerged again with a small string of golden christmas lights, and giggled as he climbed back up into the loft. “Okay, now you hold still,” He says, holding up the lights.”And close your eyes!”

 

“Well, alright, I guess,” Klarion says, smiling but somewhat unsure, tilting his head down and closing his eyes. Riley wraps the lights around Klarion’s horns. “There! If only they glowed…” He grinned. Klarion opened his eyes, pulling a mirror out of thin air to look at his head. His horns, reaching behind his head a few inches, were wrapped with the golden orbs. He considered the cost to his dignity, and then sighed. His horns began to glow softly, and then the lights did too, casting a golden light about his head. Riley grinned wider. “Now you’ve got a halo!” He clapped his hands. Klarion rolled his eyes, but let the lights continue to glow. “Okay, now that that’s done, let’s go play in the snow before Eddie decides to take pictures of us.”

 

They didn’t escape the pictures.

 

***************************

 

Turns out, every family in Gotham had the same idea- go out and enjoy the snow before it inevitably blocks everyone inside their houses. In the middle of the main square, a giant snowball fight broke out, everyone parking their cars on the sides and getting out to grab a handful. Klarion, Riley, and a few other kids had created a fort or snow, taking turns popping their heads out and decking someone with powdered water. Klarion had taken on his disguise again, now wearing a beanie hat with little fake horns to keep the lights up. He had turned them off to save his energy, but they were still a good touch to his outfit. Tim, along with Bart and Jamie, had practically fallen into the fort, and joined forces with the other boys. They were in the middle of the roundabout’s island, slowly but surely taking out everyone around them.

 

And then Mister Freeze showed up.

 

See, the thing about the first snow of the year was, everyone simultaneously decided that it was a day off from all jobs and school- crime included. It was an easy day for the Bat and his birds, and a fun one for the citizens. The rogues all put on their winter gear and went out to enjoy the snow with the people, some scrooges like Penguin excluded. But nobody got more excited about the snow than Freeze. It was one of the few times he could take off his suit for a short time, and he always challenged the whole square to a snowball fight. Sometimes the rogues would team up with him, and sometimes they’d join the city in trying to take him down. It was a holiday not marked on any calendar, but one celebrated by everyone alike. No matter how cold it is, the whole city, for once, isn’t the saddest one in the country, but the happiest. Nothing brings people together like teaming up to slam snow in people’s faces, after all.

 

But, the kids, having defeated all their possible allies, were faced with an almost impossible task- beating the master of snow himself, with only the five of them. “Foolish children!” His voice boomed, echoing off the snow. Everyone who had been “beaten” moved off the playing field, either going inside their house for a warm drink or to another part of the city for more fun. Riley slowly slid down into the fort, wide-eyed. “It’s the final boss, y’all,” he says. Tim nods seriously. “Alright, it may be just the five of us, but we’re strong. If we can beat the whole square, we can beat one chilly dude.” The four boys nod along to this speech. “Alright! So!” Bart clapped his hands together. “Jamie, Tim, you guys have the most upper-body strength, you throw. Riley, put some more support into the fort, we’re gonna need it, and Ryan and me will make more ammo.” He puts his hand in the middle, and the four other boys put theirs in as well. “Let’s do this!”

 

They last maybe five minutes, but it was a valiant effort. Soon, Mr Freeze has destroyed their fort and buried them under a very thin and safe layer of snow, giving his best dastardly laugh. “I win again!” The man crows, over-exaggerating his victory. Then he clears his throat and pulls the children out of the snow. “You fought valiantly, Kinder,” he congratulates, and then walks off to battle another unfortunate group of people. The boys high five. “We were close that time! Maybe next year we can really beat him,” Tim laughs, dusting the snow off his pants. “Come on, guys, let’s see if Alfred made hot chocolate!” Bart laughs and grabs Jamie’s hand, and they run off together. 

 

Klarion looks around, wanting another fight, preferably a proper one, but stops short when he sees one of the gargoyles on the church down the street shake off the snow. The black figure turns and looks at him, and Klarion feels his blood run cold as the snow around him. He mentally runs through all the possible places he could go that the Bat wouldn’t be able to find him, and quickly turns, patting Riley’s head. “You did good, buddy,” he says, smiling so he wouldn’t alarm the boy. “Now, let’s go find another game to play inside, so we can warm up!” Riley nods and they begin to walk away, but Klarion stiffens when he hears a grapple gun fire from the church. “Stercore,” he whispers quietly. Riley turns. “What’s wrong?” He chirps, then gasps and staggers backwards as Batman lands behind them. “Klarion,” he says, before the boy can say anything. Klarion snaps his mouth shut and nods. “Hey, Bats, what’s up?” He grins and gives Batman finger guns. The bat is not impressed. “Hand over the boy and tell me what Scarecrow and Riddler are doing with him,” He says monotonously, leaving no room for argument. Klarion holds a hand up, and Batman once again cuts in, “Don’t even think about lying.” Klarion gave an insulted huff. “Faeries  _ can’t _ lie, Batman! And I wasn’t going to anyways. Riley here has been adopted, fair and square, just like me. He wasn’t stolen for a heist, experiment, or anything of the sort, and I, for one, am not letting you take him.” He stands a bit straighter and pushes Riley behind him in example. Batman stares for a bit longer before nodding slightly. “Then i’m sure you won’t mind me taking him for a ride?” 

 

And without further ado, Batman grabs Riley and shoots his grappling gun away. Riley gave a true screech as he shot through the air, and turned to see Klarion practically glowing with rage. “Bring him  _ BACK HERE _ , you TWISTED, SELF-RIGHTEOUS  _ MONSTROSITY _ OF A MAN!” He screams. “Well,” Batman mutters, “He was telling the truth.” Riley stares in disbelief at the ill-advised disaster of a superhero as he swings away from an enraged Klarion, flying after them, flames licking at his hands. He tackles Batman, dislodging Riley from his arms, and catches him mid-air. He bares his teeth at the falling man before flicking his head sharply to the left. “Let’s go, Riley,” He mutters. 

 

“What the fuck?” Riley finally speaks as a portal materializes over their heads, drifting down and whisking them away. “Did I just get kidnapped by Batman?” Klarion puts him down and takes a few deep breaths, the fire fading from his body. “You  _ almost _ got kidnapped by Batman, until I rescued you,” Klarion nods. “Why did Batman kidnap me? I thought he had well-thought-through plans that never went wrong,” Riley says, still in shock. Klarion scoffed. “You think some grown-ass man in a military grade fursuit makes plans to bust through skylights and beat up people in equally as ridiculous costumes and gimmicks? The superhero business is made on improvisation, buddy.” Riley looks down and nods. “Where are we, anyways?” Klarion smiles, a sharp, wicked grin that fills Riley with existential dread. “Why, we’re at Uncle Jason’s!” He chirps. “Well, it’s Uncle Constantine’s, but Uncle Jason basically lives here as well, and the house listens to him more.”

 

“Do I hear Klarion?” A soft, feminine voice asks. “Orchid!” Klarion chirps, looking around. A purple being steps into the room, which upon further examination appears to be a magnificent library, a fire at the very opposite of the room, in a large hearth. There are sofas around it, probably for reading. A staircase ascends into another part of the house, and doors reside near it. Orchid patted Klarion’s head fondly. “Hello, child.” She looks at Riley. “Children. Would you like me to call John and Jason?”  Klarion shrugs, letting her take his coat. “Only if they’re not busy. I can make hot chocolate myself, but i’d prefer to have one of them there as well.” Orchid nods, taking Riley’s coat and hanging them both on the coat rack. “I will inform them of your arrival.” And then, she disappeared right into the wall. Riley blinked. “C’mon, buddy, kitchen’s this way!”

 

Jason Blood and John Constantine came down not long after, Jason in casual business wear and John wearing nothing but boxers and his coat. “I’m assuming I don’t wanna know how you buggers got in here again?” John asks immediately when he sees them. Riley pointed at Klarion, who shrugged innocently. “That doesn’t matter. Why are you two here?” Jason asks firmly, apparently not in the best mood. “Well, you see-” Riley begins, but is cut off. “Batman kidnapped Riley and I almost kicked his ass but Teekl told me it’d be better to come tell you.” At the mention of her name, a small portal opens and said cat hops gracefully out, sitting down and grooming her fur shortly before hopping up onto Klarion’s lap, where he holds her close. Jason stares blankly into space at this information while John starts laughing. “Wait wait, Batman kidnapped a kid? Again? And it wasn’t a Robin?” He giggled. Jason put his head on his chin and furrowed his eyebrows. “Why?” He asked. Riley wriggled in his seat before looking to Klarion. The boy nodded and turned to the men, more serious. “Riley was taken in by Edward Nygma and Jonathan Crane, and i’m assuming Batman thought they did it for criminal reasons. He probably took Riley to gauge my reaction to see if I was telling the truth when I told him.” Jason nodded thoughtfully. “John, please make these kids some hot chocolate, I have a call to make.” With that, he exited the room.

 

“I think the Bat’s in trouble,” John hummed as he walked towards the cupboards. “Klarion, how do you know these guys?” Riley whispered. Klarion laughed. “Well, that’s kind of a long story, but basically, Jason Blood and Etrigan found me shortly after I arrived in New York for the second time, unfortunately after I had already made some, uhh... bad decisions. They were pissed at first, but once I got them to listen, they promised to help me. John here is their, uhh… Boyfriend?” he asks, to which the man shrugs. “Probably?”

 

“Anyways, I called them my uncles as a joke, but now they act like that, so we all just went with it. My ‘legal name’ is Ryan Blood, and all that government junk, so everyone thinks we’re related.” Riley nodded. “Alright, kiddies, you want peppermint in your cocoa?” Constantine asks, holding the pan with melted chocolate in one hand and a peppermint stick in the other. “Yes, please!” The boys say in unison. As John drops it in and starts melting it, Jason walks back into the room, along with Batman and Orchid. Riley squeaks and drops under the table, while Klarion growls. Teekl ruffles her fur and sits up, but makes no sound. “Calm down, you three, he won’t try anything while i’m here,” Jason says pointedly, looking at the Bat. Batman nods and sits down at the table. “What do you want?” Klarion hisses. Batman ignores him and looks to Riley, who’s poking his head up from under the table. “Sorry for scaring you,” He says. “I needed to know if Klarion was telling the truth. Do you know why Riddler and Scarecrow… adopted you?”  _ Wow, this man left no room for small talk, huh?  _ Riley thought sourly. “Probably because my dad forgot I existed and literally left me in a hot car for hours,” He said hotly. The Bat paused. “You father, did he work at Arkham?” Riley nodded. “He’d ‘bring me to work’ when he felt like it, but I never got to go in, I just sat in the car the whole time.” John placed two mugs in front of the boys and nodded to Batman, before rinsing the pan and placing it in the sink. He leaned against the counter and watched quietly as the three spoke. “Riley, even if they did really just want to adopt you, shooting your father and giving you a room in their hideout doesn’t count as adoption. They need to sign the legal papers, and with their criminal record, they aren’t allowed to have any kids,” He stressed quietly. “So where am I supposed to go, huh? What do you want me to do? Are you really going to pull me out of the one house i’ve enjoyed living in?” Riley stood slowly, anger pulsing through him. Teekl and Klarion watched, eyes wide, as energy congregated around the boy, invisible to him and Batman, but a strange sight for the rest. “What  _ is _ that?” Klarion whispers quietly. “A sign,” Teekl meows back. Jason and John watch it, eyes wide, as it dances around the boy.

 

“Who the fuck do you think you are, anyways? Who asked you to come mess with me? Those two are better than my real parents could ever be, and yet you wanna drag me away to them? Who do you think you’re saving?” Batman stood as well, but Riley would not be cowed. “You have no room for argument. You are a child, you don’t know what’s best-” Riley laughed angrily. “Oh, but you do? You don’t even know who I am! You’re constantly picking kids up off the streets and putting them in danger, yet the moment someone you don’t like takes in a kid, even when they treat that kid better than you do, you have to give your two cents? You’re a hypocritical coward,  _ Batman. _ ” Riley’s hands were fists at his sides, like he was about to punch the man at any given moment, but instead, he chugs his now-tepid chocolate. “Let’s go, Klarion. I wanna go home.” Klarion stared for a moment before glancing at the Bat and grabbing his mug. “Okay, but you gotta hold my hand,” He says to his little brother. Riley grabbed it and glared at Batman, while Klarion pursed his lips uncomfortably and teleported them away.

 

Batman stood for a moment longer before John whistled. “You really picked the wrong kid to fuck with, didn’t ya, mate?” He laughed, glancing at Jason, who nodded back. “ _ We need to talk to Klarion, _ ” Jason signed to him. John nodded back and patted Batman’s shoulder. “Well, we’ve done all we can, get out of our house.” He gestured to the door, where Orchid stood, ready to teleport him back to Gotham. Batman walked through the threshold, muttering something about too much magic.

 

When he was gone, Jason and John’s eyes met, both worried. “A meta-human with magic potential,” John whispered. “Bloody hell.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it. That's all for Year One, but don't worry, there's plenty more where that came from!
> 
> And Happy Holidays, everyone!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this! Don't worry, as it says in the tags, I have a backlog of chapters, updating according to when a new chapter is finished, i upload the next one. You may notice this is part of a series- I may post little dribbles of things that are happening outside of Riley's point of view, as well as little fillets that won't make it into the main story- which will be multiple fics themselves. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
